Craig Birkmaier wrote: > Lot's of interesting data points in this story. > > Of particular interest: > > According to the research firm iSuppli, the average retail price > of 42-inch HDTVs - one of the most popular sizes this year - has > declined to $1,522 from $1,844 last Christmas, an 18 percent > drop. > > (Note: 42" sets have the ability to deliver resolution > approximately equal to 480P, which is well matched to standard > definition DVD). 42" sets start to appear smallish in huge stores like Best Buy or Costco. But in a typical den or living room, they are quite huge. Let's do some realistic numbers. The screen of a 42" 16:9 set is 20.66" high. If we watch the TV at 5 picture heights viewing distance, that's 8.6' away. So I think that's a realistic sitting position in may rooms. Almost 9'. Some would say that's too generous. Human vision corrected, if necessary, to 20/20, should be capable of perceiving 1 arcmin of angular separation: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Visual_acuity http://www.ndt-ed.org/EducationResources/CommunityCollege/PenetrantTest/ Introduction/visualacuity.htm http://webvision.med.utah.edu/KallSpatial.html Assuming the model is this simple, which I don't think it is, what does an SD, ED, and HD set with 42" screen offer, if viewed from this 8.6' distance? SD 480i (or 312 effective): 2.2 arcmin. Obviously, this can be improved. (Interlace factor 0.65.) ED 480p: 1.43 arcmin. This can also be improved. HD 720p: 0.95 arcmin. Just barely over the limit. HD at 1080i (or 702 effective): 0.98 arcmin. Almost identical to 720p. HD at 1080p: 0.64 arcmin. Overkill. But now you can move in to 3.5 picture heights, or 6' viewing distance for a 42" set, and now you will be right at 0.91 arcmin. Just about right. Slight overkill. So, a 42" HD set should be good for viewers who do not live in a McMansion. Bert ---------------------------------------------------------------------- You can UNSUBSCRIBE from the OpenDTV list in two ways: - Using the UNSUBSCRIBE command in your user configuration settings at FreeLists.org - By sending a message to: opendtv-request@xxxxxxxxxxxxx with the word unsubscribe in the subject line.